This week’s box includes: Radishes, head of lettuce, cabbage, broccoli (or cauliflower), celery, cucumbers, spring onions, summer squash, beets, and spinach. You can see a photo that can help with identification on our Facebook page or check out our weekly video on Instagram.
Need storage instructions? Visit our fruit & veggie home pages. Click on the pic and a new page opens with storage instructions and a list of recipes curated by Conne Ward Cameron over the years.
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What a gracious plenty in this week’s box! Just in time for the potluck celebrations you’re no doubt attending this Memorial Day weekend. I’m counting on sharing the bounty as part of my plan of attack this week.
First up, beets. The greens on these beauties don’t last long – they turn to mush quickly. Separate them from their roots and enjoy them in this potluck-tested favorite sesame seed studded greens dish from Madhur Jaffrey’s tome World Vegetarian or Soba Noodles with Beet Greens Miso Pesto. Making homemade soba noodles is simple and easy! I’ll get around to posting the description soon. I often cook the beet roots upon arrival well before I know what I’m going to make with them. It’s fast and easy, stores well, and saves future prep time. To roast, lightly oil the roots (do not peel), wrap them as a group in tightly sealed aluminum foil and roast them in the oven at 375 until tender. Cool, then slip the skins off under running water. Pat or air dry before storing in a closed container inside the refrigerator.
A myriad of beet recipes await you on our website here, including the Belarusian Mother-in-Law Beet Salad from our friend Marc Sommers of Parsley’s Catering. Or be a rebel: substitute cooked beets for potatoes in your favorite potato salad recipe. Toss with toasted walnuts, feta, and fresh dill or basil for crunch and color.
Hurrah! Summer Squash arrived for the first time this year. Unless something catastrophic happens, summer squash makes it into almost every weekly box well into the fall. If you ever feel like you don’t have enough squash to make a certain dish, save what you have and wait a week. Summer squash is the friendliest of all vegetables; it plays well with others by making them taste better without stealing the show. My first thought on seeing summer squash was time for Squash Casserole (maybe next week). I’m also looking forward to adding shredded squash to taco meat because we’ve yet to tire of giant taco salads. Be aware that lettuce will be waning soon. Celebrate while you can!
Fresh celery is one of the eye-opening produce items that we’re lucky to receive a couple of times each year. Yes, homegrown tomatoes are prime examples of flavor lost in the industrial food system. The same is true for celery! Fresh celery is terrific as dipping sticks, bloody Mary garnish and in stock. Try it as a feature in this Stir-Fried Beef & Celery recipe that avowed skeptics rave about. Celery keeps a very long time in the produce drawer of your refrigerator. If you’d like to make room for, I dunno, cabbage, it freezes well too. Cut into shorter stalks and you’ll have it available for making stock later.
But hey, we hope that you do take this opportunity to highlight fresh celery at its best. The following salad is the star at Charleston’s Lowland restaurant. One year after enjoying it Charlotte suggested, “make sure you include that celery salad recipe from Charleston.” Done.
Lowland’s Celery Salad
As shared by Chef Jason Stanhope via joythebaker.com.
For the salad:
1 large head organic celery
1 bunch fresh mint, roughly chopped
2 cups walnuts (about 100 grams), toasted and finely chopped
10 pitted dates, sliced into ½-inch pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 cups extra sharp cheddar, broken up and roughly chopped into crumbles
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup sherry vinaigrette (recipe below)
For the vinaigrette (makes about 2 ½ cups):
2 tablespoons minced shallot
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 cup avocado oil
½ cup sherry vinegar
Make the vinaigrette: In a medium bowl or medium jar with a tight fitting lid, whisk together the shallot, Dijon, avocado oil, and sherry vinegar until smooth and emulsified. Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week.
Make the salad: Remove and wash the outer celery stalks, then chop them into ½-inch pieces. Separate the tender celery heart and leaves—these are your fancy little garnish later.
Bring a small pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add the chopped celery stalks and blanch for 1 minute (and no longer)—just enough to soften the bite but keep the crunch. Immediately transfer the celery to an ice bath to cool completely, then drain and pat dry.
In a large bowl, toss together the blanched celery, chopped mint, toasted walnuts, and dates. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Be generous.
To serve, spoon a layer of the celery mixture into a shallow serving bowl. Scatter grated cheddar over the top. Drizzle with olive oil and a generous splash of sherry vinaigrette. Finish with the reserved celery heart and leaves for an extra hit of freshness.
This salad is crisp, unexpected, and an absolute stunner alongside roasted chicken. Enjoy!
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Finally, I was hoping that there would be more spinach so that I could share the following recipe from the good ‘ol NY Times Cooking team. Truly, I am trying to write notes one week without referring to them. They make it difficult. This recipe sounds delicious alongside your favorite protein and pasta.
Miso Creamed Spinach
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced small
1¼ cups heavy cream
¼ cup white miso
1 teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal), more to taste
1 teaspoon black pepper, more to taste
20 ounces fresh spinach
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan (about 4 ounces)
Drizzle the olive oil into a large high-sided skillet over medium high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until softened and browned, about 6 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium-low, then pour in the heavy cream. Whisk the miso into the heavy cream (since miso is thick, it may be easier to split the paste into smaller pieces, then whisk vigorously). As the miso is mixed in, the color of the cream will change to tan. Season with salt and pepper.
Add two handfuls of the spinach to the cream and mix with a spatula, allowing the heat to wilt the spinach. Once wilted, repeat with another two handfuls. Repeat until all of the spinach has been added (this process takes 5 to 8 minutes). Simmer for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring often, until the cream has thickened and reduced by half. Remove from the heat.
Mix in the Parmesan until completely melted; taste and add more salt and pepper as desired. Serve hot.
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Here’s to enjoying all of your veg this week!
~Suzanne